Mumbrella understands the Outdoor Media Association (OMA) advised APN Outdoor some of the ads could be deemed discriminatory by the AANA’s Code of Ethics. Once Clemenger BBDO Melbourne learned APN Outdoor took issue with two of the campaign’s seven executions, the campaign was pulled from APN Outdoor altogether, but other outdoor companies will run the ads anyway.

A mock-up of how the campaign would have looked on APN Outdoor billboards

The out-of-home element of the campaign features some of the questions submitted on the Deadly Questions portal including ‘Why can’t Aboriginal people just get over the past?’

Mumbrella understands APN Outdoor submitted seven executions of the campaign to the OMA for review. The OMA referred the ads to Ad Standards, which advised two of the ads could be deemed as discriminatory by the AANA’s Code of Ethics.

APN Outdoor CEO and managing director, James Warburton, said in a statement to Mumbrella: “We referred the ads in question to the Advertising Standards Bureau, which is usual practice. The ASB advised that some of the ads might be in breach. This information was conveyed to the agency.”

Under the OMA Code of Ethics, OMA members must comply with the AANA Code of Ethics. The OMA has also developed an Advertising Content Policy which includes the directive: “An OMA member will not post an advertisement if the OMA’s copy advice states that the advertisement is likely to breach a self-regulatory code”.

Mumbrella understands, however, that once APN Outdoor refused to run two of the seven executions, the campaign was pulled from APN Outdoor altogether.

A spokesperson for Aboriginal Victoria, said in a statement: “We understand that some of the questions asked by the public – and that we are repeating in the campaign – are provocative, but that’s the point. To have an open discussion we need to acknowledge that some ugly viewpoints exist.

“We need our media partners to stand up and support Aboriginal Victorians throughout this process. It’s incredibly disappointing to have APN and the OMA dictate what they think is appropriate with regards to discrimination, when these questions are ones that we invited, are providing responses to, and represent the real conversation that Victorians want to have.”

Simon Lamplough, managing director at Clemenger BBDO Melbourne, said Ooh Media has decided to run the campaign instead.

“The campaign was developed in partnership with Aboriginal Victorians and the Treaty Working Group to provide a platform that encourages discussion amongst all Victorians about the issue of Treaty.

“Our brief was to change perceptions and create work with cultural impact.”

Another Deadly Question, which now won’t run on APN Outdoor boards

At the time of the campaign’s launch, Evan Roberts, ECD at Clemenger Melbourne said: “We’re not even asking the most basic questions and it’s not because we are not interested or we don’t care, it’s actually because we are all worried about looking ignorant or being racist.

“To get where we need to get be, the absolute first step is to go ‘Alright get all your dumb questions out, ask anything you want to ask,’ so Deadly Questions is a place where you can ask an Aboriginal person any question you want and you can ask it anonymously.”

Mumbrella understands JC Decaux will continue to run the campaign.

The OMA has been approached for comment.

UPDATE 2:55pm:The OMA has issued the following statement in response to the story:

“OMA sought copy advice on the Victoria State Government’s Deadliest Questions campaign from Ad Standards. While we recognise the purpose of the advertisement is to raise awareness of an important issue and that the advertisement is meant to provoke a reaction and drive visitation to the website, Ad Standards advised that two of the executions could potentially be found in breach of section 2.1 of the AANA Code of Ethics if the advertisement attracted complaints. This information was provided to our OMA members.”

Abigail Dawson is a senior content journalist covering event content. Abigail was previously a senior reporter for Mumbrella covering the agency space. She graduated from RMIT University in 2016 where she completed a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) majoring in politics, economies and businesses.

If someone came into your family home, killed your Dad, raped your daughter and sent your son away in a van and then had to the nerve to open your fridge, crack a beer and make a sandwich and sit down on your couch to watch the footy on tv.. how would you feel?

Then if you got mad at that person and asked them to leave your house and called the police to arrest you … but instead, they told you to “fuck off and stop whining you curious white dog!” .. How would you feel?

…. think about it …. then ask yourself why can’t they get over it?

Then imagine if this happened to not just you… but all your friends, family and neighbours… but not just your generation.. you kids generation too…

Think about it… then ask yourself why can’t they just get over it?

but then the people who did this throw you a bone and say we will spare a couple of hundred bucks a week support for you! and tell you the past is the past get over it…

Your all racist, Australia infantilises its past. We are doing the same with climate change. No brains or stomache for anything different that may effect your bottom line. Say good bye… oh PS did you know the Pacific plastic gyre is now 4x the surface area of France. I used to love irony.

Totes agree with most of what you said, except for the white dog bit. Because whiteness has conditioned us to think negatively about “black” and positively about “white” so white dog isn’t all that offensive as opposed to the actual slur

Well it’s not over.
1967 Aboriginal people we’re recognised as citizens. That is just over 50 years ago, which means we have people who still remember how they weren’t citizens.

We still have people searching for their families.

We still have people dealing with traumatised family members, and we still have people waiting to get paid for when the government held their wages, and the stolen generation doing their free house work.

That’s not comparable at all. The government that committed those atrocities was abolished, with its leaders sentenced for war crimes and their names made synonymous with evil. The country was split up, put under foreign administration, and obliged to pay reparations for the violence it caused. Those reparations included enormous sums of money, land, and even forced labour which often proved lethal. The victims of German-engineered genocide got their own country in their ancestral homeland.

So if we want to do all that, you might have a case for unjustified whining. Or you can just tell us again about how the world got over it because Germany said “Aw shoot, our bad.”

Arghh! This campaign (and website) is exactly what’s required in Australia right now. Get with the program OMA & Ad Standards! If the victims of such discrimination deem it necessary to use these questions in their ads, then anti-discrimination rulings should take that into consideration. The World, and The People, seem to be moving much faster than stale administrators.

In order to ask straight questions, and promote thought and constructive answers that serve to build a better Australian community, there must be the freedom to speak plainly, and a willingness to compromise from all concerned.
Successive governments have turned a blind eye, whilst throwing funds at every perceived problem, in the hope that they would go away.

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